The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for processing articles, and particularly non-orienting fruit such as oranges, according to a surface characteristic such as blemish. More particularly, the present invention is an improvement over the apparatus and method for sorting fruit according to color, surface blemish, size and/or shape disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,068, filed Sept. 30, 1982, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,515,275 entitled "Apparatus and Method for Processing Fruit and Like", incorporated herein by reference. Also incorporated herein by reference is U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,083, filed Sept. 30, 1982, entitled "Apparatus for Spinning Fruit for Sorting Thereof" which discloses apparatus for transporting fruit through a fruit examining region and spinning the fruit while it is in the fruit examining region so as to present substantially the entire surface of the fruit to overhead examining devices, such as video cameras.
The aforementioned U.S. patent applications are collectively directed to an apparatus for soring generally elongated fruit such as lemons which automatically orient themselves along a predetermined axis when they are spun on the roller conveyor disclosed in aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,083. When a lemon is spun on the roller conveyor disclosed therein, the stem and blossom ends thereof automatically orient along a substantially horizontal axis. The overhead viewing camera disclosed in aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,068 therefore does not mistake the stem and blossom ends of the lemon for a blemish.
A problem with the fruit processing apparatus and method disclosed in aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,068 and the spinning apparatus disclosed in aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,083 is that they do not lend themselves to sorting generally spherical fruit, such as oranges and grapefruits. Such fruit does not automatically orient along a predetermined axis when it is spun on the roller conveyor. Thus, it is possible that generally spherical fruit will orient in such a manner that the stem and blossom ends thereof will be presented to the viewing camera and will be mistaken for surface blemish.
It is desirable to provide a means for determining the orientation of generally spherical fruit which does not orient along a predetermined axis when it is rotated and which is usable in connection with the apparatus and method disclosed in aforementioned U.S. patent applications Ser. Nos. 430,068 and 430,083. Preferably, such means should provide fruit orientation information to the processing apparatus disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 430,068 so that processing of the fruit surface characteristic data may be altered according to the orientation of the fruit.